Building construction



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l atented dune il tl, lil tlllu CQEPORA'EIQH, 01F NEW YURK, lil'. iii, AFCGRPOEATIUN GE DELihW-QM BUHLDJING- CONfi'ElL'UGTIQhl.

Application filed April d, whit. serial Ito. sense.

This invention relates to a building con struction and more particularlyto a ceiling construction composed of pro-cast slabs o gypsum or likeplastic material.

The invention has for an object to provide a novel and improved ceilingconstruction which is adapted to aflord the floor frame superiorprotection from fire, which comprises a plurality of pro-cast slabs ofplastic material suspended from the members of the floor trams in anovel manner to provide a substantially continuous body of the plasticmaterial beneath the floor beams and at the same time to enable theslabs to be erected in a simple, economical and highly convenientmanner, without requiringthe use of scaflclding to form a substantiallyflat ceiling below the door beams.

A further object of the invention is to provide a novel and improvedceiling construction comprising pro-cast slabs of plastic material, inwhich the individual slabs are suspended from and below the floor memberin a novel and improved manner adapted to enable the slabs tobeconveniently suspended at any desired distance and at a uniformdistance below the floor beams, and at the same time to insure theproduction of a substantially fiatceiling.

To these ends the ceiling comprises a plu-= rality of precast slabs ofplastic material which are in accordance with the present inventionsuspended om and below the door beams by sus ension members attached tothe floor beam and which strear ranged to cooperate with devicesembedded in the slab and which 1 *efect from the ends thereof. In thepreiwfed form of the in vention, longitudinal ntorcing members areembedded in the abs and toe ends ct such members are preferably arrangedto project through slots or recesses in the ends of the slabs and beyondthe ends of the slabs, so that when the slabs are erected and inabutting relation to one another, the ends ot the reentercing members atone slab extend into the recesses in the end ofslabs l2, 13 are will behereinafter described and particu larly pointed out in the claims at theend of this specification.

ln the drawing illustrating the preferred form of the invention, Figure1 is a sectional View illustrating one of the floor beams or members andthe manner of suspension of abutting ceiling slabs from the floor beam;Fig. 2 is a sectional viewtalren on the line 2-2 of Fig. 1; Fig. 3 is asectional view illustratin an alternate construction or method otsuspension of the ceiling slabs; Fig. i is a sectional view illustratingthe manner in which the ceiling slabs may be suspended at a distancebelow the floor beam; Fig. 5 is a sectional View on the line 55 of Fig.l.

Referrin' to the drawing, 10 represents one of the cor beams of a floorframe which is herein shown as comprising a channel bar but which maycomprise any of the usual forms of floor members or beams employed inbuilding construction. 12,18 represent portions of precast-ceiling slabsof gypsum or other plastic material which are preferably reenforced toimpart additional strength thereto.- As herein shown, the ceiling slabs12, Bars provided with longitu- ,dinalreentorcin members, one of whichis shown in each s ab as 15, 16. The ceiling suspended from the floorbeams 10 with each slab spanning the space between two of the iloonbeamsl0 and with adjacent slabs in abutting relation to form a substantiallyceiling below the ceiling slabs, and in the preferred form of the invention the ends of the reenforcing members 15, 16 are arranged toproject beyond the ends of the slab, and a suspension member 22, hereinshown as a hanger, is attached t to the lilOOI' beam 10 and arranged toengage and cooperate with the projecting end portions of the reentorcingmembers. The su pension member or hanger 29. preferably comprisesa fiatsteel bar, the upper end of which is bent around the top flange of thechannel floor beam 10 to secure Y? hanger thereon. The hanger isarranged to extend directly down along rear face of the Web of thechannel 10 project slightly below the lower flan oi? the channel. Thelower end the hanger 22 terminates and provided with an opei may. asurest to permit the pee.

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' therein.

of the projecting ends of the reenforcing members 15, 16, which projectfrom the ends of adjacent slabs. In order'to accommodate theseprojecting end portions of the reenforcin members 15, 16 to permit theadjacent sabs to assume an abutting relation, the ends of the slabs 12,13 are provided with notched out portions or open slots 20 The slots 20are preferably arranged with respect to the reenforcing mem-- bers 15,16, so that the projecting ends of the reenforcing members extendthrough the slots 20 to beyond the ends of the slabs, and the slots 20are of such a width as to enable the projecting ends of the reenforcingmembers of one slab to extend into the .corresponding slot in the end ofthe adjacent sla In practice, the slabs 12, 13 may be erected with thelower end of the hanger 22 extended downwardly into the space betweenthe ends of the abutting slabs in the manner illustrated in Fig. 3, butit is preferred to form the openings or slots 20 sufliciently deep toaccommodate the end of the hanger. In Fig. 1 I have illustrated the slot20 as comprising an initial portion 27 of greater depth than the mainbody of the slot 20 and forming therewith a shoulder 28 against whichthe end of the hanger 22 may rest. With this construction, it will beobserved that the lower end of the hanger 22 is protected against fireby a substantial body of the plastic material comprising the lowerportion of the slab itself. It is also preferred to provide the ends ofthe slabs with a rabbet 32 which is adapted to permit grout or otherplastic material to be pouredunder the lower flange 24 of the floor beam10 after the slabs have been erected.

The suspension members or him ers 22 referably comprise as above statedat steel ers, and in practice the hangers 22 may be formed with aninitial right-angled bend at the corner 30. and shipped to the job inthis form. The erector then applies the hanger to the floor beam 10,bending the upper end thereof around the top flange 23 of the floorbeam. This may be readily and conveniently done by a hammer. With thisconstruction of hanger it is possible to obtain a uniform spacing of theslabs 12, 13 below the floor beam inasmuch as the bend 30 may be of adefinite distancefrom the lower end of thehanger, and the erector byplacing the hangers over the top flange of the floor beam causes theslots 26 to assume a definite position with relation to the bottom ofthe floor beam, so that as the slabs are erected with the projectingends of the reenforcing members inserted through the slots 26 in thehanger, the slabs are caused to be positioned at a uniform level and aflat ceiling at a substantially uniform level is insured. In practice itis sometimes desirneaaaae able that the cealing slabs 12, 13 be spacedsome distance below the floor beams in order to permit the passage ofconduits and wires between the ceiling andthe floor beam, and for thispurpose the hangers 22 may be made of a greater length than the-hangersordinarily employed andthe ceiling slabs suspended in the mannerdescribed in connection with the construction illustrated in Figs. 1 and3, using the elongatedhanger. It is preferred to providean additionalstrap 35 riveted or otherwise secured to the hanger which may beconveniently bent around the lower flange 24 of the floor beam in orderto impart additional rigidity to the ceiling construction.

In order to erect the floor slabs it isnecessary for the erector merelyto position the hangers 22 over one of the floor beams and insert theends of the reenforcing members projecting from one end of the ceilingslab through the slots 26 in the hangers. The second set of hangers arethen slipped over the ends of the reenforcing members which project fromthe opposite end of the slab,

and are then positioned upon the next floor.

beam and the upper end of the hanger hammered around the upper flange ofthe floor beam. In this manner the erector may erect the ceiling withoutrequiring scaffolding, as all of the work may be done by the erectorstanding upon the top of the floor beams.

After the slabs have been erected to form the ceiling, grout or otherplastic material may be poured into the slots 20 and the rabbet 32, andwhen set the grout serves to inchor the hanger to the reenforcingmemers.

While the preferred embodiment of the invention has been illustrated anddescribed, it may be embodied in other forms within the scope of thefollowing claims.

Having thusdescribed the invention, what is claimed is 1. Thecombination with a floor beam of two pre-cast ceiling slabs of plasticmaterial located below said floor beam in substantially abuttingrelation, and means for suspending said slabs from the floor beamcomprising a device attached to and depending from the fioor beam, andmeans 'embedded'in and projecting from the adjacent ends of each slaband engaging said device.

2. The combination with a floor beam, of a pre-c'ast ceiling slab ofplastic material provided with a slot in the end thereof, a deviceembedded in the slab and extended into said slot, and means attached tovthe floor beam and engaging said, device within the slot for suspendingthe slab below the floor beam. x

3. The combination with afloor beam of two pre-cast ceiling slabs ofplastic material located below said floor beam and in substantiallyabutting relation, provided with lltl ran

longitudinal reenforcing ,members embedded therein and projecting fromthe adjacent ends of said slabs, anda member attached to the floor beamand en aging the projecting portions of the reeni orcing members forsuspending the slabs from the floor beam.

4. The combination with a floor beam of two pre-cast ceiling slabs ofplastic material located below the floor beam and in substantiallyabutting relation, and each provided with longitudinal reenforcingmembers embedded therein and projecting from the adjacent ends thereof,openings in the ends of said ceiling slabs for receiving the projectingends of the reenforcin members when the slabs are in abutting relation,and a member attached to the floor beam and cooperatin with bothreenforcing members for snspendin the slabs from the cor beam. 5. Thecom ination with a floor beam, of two pre-cast ceiling slabs of plasticmaterial,

provided at their adjacent ends with slots extending downward from theupper .surface thereof and terminating above the bottom of the slab torovide a substantial body of plastic materia below the bottomof theslots, devices embedded in the slabs and extended into said slots, and ahanger attached to the floor beam projecting into said slot andcooperating with the devices in said slot.

6. The combination with a floor frame havin members spaced apart, of aceiling extend the same and composed of re-cast sla s of plasticmaterial having reen orcing members,

7 suspended from said ed under said members to fire roof and hangers forsaid slabs en aged with said floor members and having eir lower endsextended between adjacent slabs and enga ed with the reenforcin membersof both sla s below-the upper sur aces of said slabs.

7. The combination with a floor frame havin membersispaced a art, of aceiling exten ed under said mem rs to fire roof the same and composed ofpre-cast sla s of plastic material govided with longitudinal reenforcingmem rs embedded therein and projecting from the ends thereof, andhangers on the floor members provided with openings into which the endsof the corresponding reenforcing members of abutting slabs project tosuspend the slabs from the floor mem rs.

8. In a building construction, in combination, a floor frame providedwith a plurality of floor members spaced apart, and a continuous flatceilin located below and cor members and composed of a plurality ofpro-cast slabs of plastic material of substantial thickness havmgreenforcing means embedded therein and arranged with each slab spanningthe space betweentwo of the floor members, and hanger members en gingthe floor members, and having their lower ends, extended betweenabutting slabs and engaging thereenforcement of I 0th slabs.

In testimony whereof, I have signed my name to this specification.

' THOMAS ROWAN.

